Page 70 of A Blightress of Wrath
Icouldn’t help it.Myeyes lingered at her mouth, andIstepped imperceptibly closer as the song came to its last line.
“Wecannot reverse what’s come at great cost, but we can take the time to remember them.”
Thelast note sounded and everyone in the room turned to clap.EveryoneexceptSaeandI.Weheld each other still, the sound of cheers surrounding us.Ihardly heard them.Oureyes were locked, our hands on each other’s bodies, refusing to let each other go.
Itold myself to take my hands from her waist, to turn and clap with the others, butIsimply didn’t want to.
Sheopened her mouth and took a deep breath, her eyes a sparkle of deep blue. “Thevin,I?—”
BOOM.
Arupture beyond the tower rumbled, andIpulledSaedown to the floor, covering her huddled body with my own.Screamsflew through the room and people began to run as great black clouds billowed in on the orange glow of the sun entering the dining hall.Hauntingsnarls bellowed through the air and great black vines slithered over the arched balconies, quickly followed by the beasts who climbed them.
IgrabbedSaeunder her arm, yanking her up and heading for the stairwell that led down theSpirejust as blood cut through the air in a familiar tang of iron and salt.Criesof pain and fear drummed through my ears, andIignored them all, my sole task to getSaeto safety.Hertears tracked down her cheeks as she looked back in horror at the massacre behind us.Icaught a quick glimpse to assess the level of danger, counting no less than twentyBlightbeasts that tore through the room, followed swiftly by the one woman we all feared most.
TheBlightresshad come forSaelyn.
Chapter34
Saelyn
Clothedin a black gown with sheer black panels that ran high up along her neck,Icaught the eye of the woman who had started all of this.Herblood red lips curved into a smile and her eyes, somehow catching multiple colors at once, glinted, offering me a glimpse into her great well of power.
Isaw it there, surrounding her in a colorless void.Thedark abyss of hatred and wrath swirled around her pale skin and blindingly white hair that ran in long, lush trails down her back.Eventhrough the din of screaming and pain around me,Iheard her speak.
“Hello,LittleOne.”
“Gether out of here,Thevin!Tothe stairs!Now!”Iheard my mother’s shout just before she erected a great ball of green light, pulling long swaths of power from it that wrapped around two of theBlightbeasts, pinning them to the floor whereLadyLannaswept in to slice off their heads.
Withouta word,Thevinpulled me to the staircase.Ilooked back to watch theBlightresslift theViceroyfrom the floor and shred through his chest with sharp black nails, his blood sputtering over her lips, matching them in color.
“Saelyn!”Thevincried in my ear. “Move!”
“Wait!”Iyelled back. “Ican fix this!”
Hisface furrowed as he all but dragged me across the floor. “Weneed to leave, now!Getto your mother’s portals on the staircase!”
“Stop!”Ibegged as he bent and lifted me over his shoulder.Hedidn’t heed my shouts as he began our descent down the staircase that wound around the outside of theSpire.Ipleaded with him to let me down before we hit a wall of black, the inky vines crawling up the side of theSpire, thick with thorns.Hecursed and lowered me finally as we witnessed even moreBlightbeasts bounding up the sides of the stone along the vines.Mymother’s waiting portals flickered just a few feet away, but still beyond the horrors theBlightresshad brought to annihilate everyone in that dining hall.Witheach jump, the dark creatures’ lumen-like bodies would bind with the vines, allowing the monsters to gain footing up the vertical surface.
Thevincursed, slashing at the growth woven over the stairs with a daggerI’dnever seen before.
Igrabbed his shoulders, calling, “Ican warn them!”
Hisresponse was on his lips, but too late asIspoke under my breath, “Revertaydenen tepiore.”
Ina flash of white,Thevinsqueezed my waist. “You’rewelcome.I’veenjoyed it, too.”
Istumbled and blinked, my breath coming in rapid bouts.Myskin was no longer marred with the spray of blood, my hair still pinned tidily on top of my head.TheSongofRemembrancewas ending, andIhad just seconds to get this timing right and undo the course of events that would arrive soon.
“Sae?”Thevinplaced his hand at my neck. “Whatis it?”
“TheBlightress,”Istarted, my eyes darting to the edge of the room where the boom would come at any second. “She’shere!”Ipointed andThevin’shead darted in the direction they’d come.
“TheBlightress?Shewouldn’t come here.Shewouldn’t risk?—”
Thesong ended and the room erupted again and for the first time in applause. “Everyoneout!”Ishouted. “Getaway from those windows!”
BOOM.
